Bottle conveyer



Feb. 13, 1945. F. GETTELMAN BOTTLE CONVEYER Filed Oct. 5, 1942 INVENTOR/ FTQEDz/CK 6577754 m4 ATTO RN E Y5.

fvithtne Bottles; 1

1 @Eridtik I to M 54 m-mm I a. I *r ww mi mm ilifbiitflv tfi' t two "caaree'en ning'sauenpe ev sr "neifiteweliiiig braeket ss U I "'th or movement he 'co' eye'r is areceivin' member ls terfitne object a fiver-ret ke 5 5mlrrem'tnetreaes" r, at: A P:

feyfer, eixifg br'oa nd'hatfitosuppbftxmu ideal I, I I duti s.iteriaitb retain theymss Iraizmefnts; ,siih d finped for siiiisedunft dispbsal. I

:Irltflentshifitbefrenfoved;and fisthe-obiedt 1 "Election 6 broken glass rr'o'm the veyer or the "present invention to save "the expense eiito th' receiver, is adliieved bya'csilieritly y ilif and danger of 'suqh removal -.by-automaticaflly I le meiriber's so biased as herma ly t'o' lf'e swepins .brbken'fr'aenients 'ot zfilass tromfthe pbiiquiy ac rb s tne pathazfi eonveyrmdvemeirt. veyer whiie; it the 'bdttfiesfitbfeoii "tie-* rneiii1dabie iewiices iiiayfiintheirsimplest ioriii,

finilfip'eiiea nidvemeritwithtne ceriveyer aids. comprisesimplypiecesof clock spring f"l6' a'ni lfl closureofiiiyinvention,' I ZI airoiiieii bythe breek inithe lower'giiiae ran 2.

"" hike c-csnveyerteqiiippeii with'i'nventionj I igsz.is anansverseseetionthm h hectat" I V, qspri g 1 Thus the eprmg re -"wi-l-l rnov'e la e'r Fig. 3 isa transverse. sectionit'hroiihgthe iievioe ffi f fi' i yfi fi h fiif 3 1 e zg pmam gt 5mm nt ma d. aeseap ebperatioii 'f' thesprin2 16wil1 be" nsan tythe spfine-r Forbtnerpurpesestie I "e-iueiitineais' the samerl e'riente number ere eetmg aevices may be varied-accordtharafctersit r ughoiittlieseverzil'views; I mg I tnerequirenients; bne may serve in most dtne'rwise eqxiverrtidnareoiiveyer in yihich stijuctures but 'anyfifiesired number nlay be inventions i-hdiibdiate'd may ee m a I The ejecting etiics' opefa'ite diflereiitly e- I -rfaiiiemadeiip dr chaiiiieistjana's'cehstitdungi teraingte the orfditibns obtainihg on-the'com [*rrame members likeeuiiiewayjviitninjwhieh T the butwar "y yer. I ii-s snew nFi'g. there' isndthirig' alreaii u'ma retum't I '31 Zoifa etnve' ier 35 II the toe-is I I ig r p yw e 'pr' p t ;p1 j1i fm i g la'ss fragments f9, 20, etc *Under such ci'rcuhtoniwh'i -tiiefw orkis conveyed. y fitancefstlie 'strength r ias'brthe"ejecting-men .1 frnef'iiar" device 'chosenitb eizeniplifyI'jtlie be'rxts win-be such-theft eueh memberrwm not finv'exition is re 'eonveyei-suehas commonl or inar y l pp e a ly b t will isimblyflie irea" *froin a Te c'apper inechanism, fire iinyieiiiinely across tn eetmvey rwith swncienc dii'bfth'b'dtitlle's entire i Veyer, s at eirticl'sle, zugw'itn a e m;

n Tq rastezreu wmeenanne s apea I, g I I I I ndft 'carr'y 'iibp r aha iiqwer the owever. rneejectidn 'wi11',= I I rails I and-I 2 sizisbr the'patfh of bottle g ;I faciiitateilibysliiitvibi'atoryfy eldiiig m vemeiit moveiireirtenthe"ediiveyer. Heretofore'such rails -oi!thethrillsftagainstitsbias;sucii-aswiii norhave been continuous. In accordance with the mally occur by th intermittent sliding of the arpresent invention the lower rail I2 is discontinued ticles l9 and 20 laterally. This slight vibration at least at one side of the conveyer at Ma, leavmade possible by the fact that the member I6 is ing an open space beneath rail ll between two or resiliently yieldable from its normal position, will more consecutive brackets 9. Beyond this disfacilitate the displacementot the articles from charge opening for small objects, the rail I2 re-. the conveyer onto thereceiverli. sumes at 12b. P a Under normal operating conditions of a bottle In the device exemplifying the invention in Fig. conveyer, however, the stream of bottles delivered 1, the gap between Ma and in is sumcient to onto the conveyer from the capper is virtually stitute's el tween iii'to "which the broken glass ts hiher above-the ctnve er-t'reaas s than is I thehonveyer eitcept thebroken continuous. When a bottle encounters the resiliently yieldable discharge member 16, such member cannot eject the bottle laterally because the bottle is supported against lateral displacement by contact with the upper rail H which is continuous between the brackets 9. Thus, the bottle is held to the conveyer and the ejecting member I6 is forced to yield to permit the passage of the bottle. The resilient bias of th memberis such that it can readily beforced aside by-a bottle whose frictional engagement with the conveyor is supplemented by the lateral support given by rail I I as shown in Fig. 2.

Assuming, however, that there is a small object (such as broken glass) intervening between; a

continuous succession of larger articles (such as bottles) supported by the rail H, in that event the resiliently biased ejecting; member lfiyafter 1 yiously been forced from its normal position.

The operation of the ejecting member I1 is in no respect different from that already described, except that it operates at a different leveland therefore acts upon'objects which, even though not retained by the side rails, may be so low in height as not to have been engaged by'the first ejector l6. I i The weight of the objects is also. a factor. The

filled bottles, like that shown at [8, are sumciently heavy so that they tend, even without lateral supportfrom the rail H, to force the spring l6 aside, while the glass fragments, being not only lighter per se because of their smaller size, but also (because they have no liquid content, are insufliciently. heavy. to cling to the conveyer against the bias of the ejecting arm l6 or..,l|.

Thus, for certain sorting purposes, the biajs of the arm may be so chosen with reference to the relative weights of the articles to ,be sorted, that the arm will be effective solely onthe baslsof weight without requiringany of the articles be laterally supported. Since the weight is errecfor such fragments to become caught or retained on the conveyer in opposition to their sweeping pressures. The use of a supplemental sweeping arm I1 in closer proximity to the conveyer than the arm l6 makes subsantially certain the complete rem-oval of all particles of glass from the surface of the conveyer so that no glass fragments will be delivered with the bottles. Even particles sufficiently minute to drop between the ing substantially rigid bottle supports adapted for ""free lateral release of glass fragments, of a glass ;-receiv er laterally adjacent the conveyer at one side thereof and a resiliently yieldable glass ejecting"'arn:1 "mounted at the opposite side of the conveyer and provided with a continuous sweeping edge and extending obliquely across the con- V by said guard veyer' toward said receiver, together with guard means between the conveyer and theglass receiver at a 'sufiicientlevel above the conveyer to provide clearance for glass fragments to be ejected into'sai l receiveruwhile providing lateral support for maintaining bottles on said conveyer agains't the pressureof the resilient arm.

' 2; The device of claiml' in which said arm compr ses apiece of clock spring in fragment removing proximityto the conveyer having sulficient strength to eject glass i'ragments'but yieldable to permit the 'passage'of bottles supported means against lateral displacement. I 3. The combination of a bottle conveyer comprising transversely extending substantially rigid platesadapted 'to support individual bottles, and

a resiliently flexible glass ejecting sweep constituting a length of clock spring supported at one side of the conveyer and extending obliquely across the path of conveyer plate movement in proximity to the conveyer plates in aposition to push broken' bottles and fragments of glass laterally from the conveyer, said sweep being continubuslyyieldable to thevpressure of filled bottles and of insufficient bias to prevent their carriage at conveyer speed. 7

4. The combination of an endless conveyer hav- =ing substantially rigid supporting surfaces of tive through the coeiiicient of friction, itwill also be. apparent that in some instancesthe sorting may be accomplished as between one class of ar- ,ticle which tendsto cling to the conveyer, and

Inasmuch as the resiliently. yieldable glassremoving arms or sweeps l6 and extend from their respective points of support laterally and rearwardly arcoss the substantially rigidtransvers'ely disposed conveyer plates 8 and. in ,the

" direction of the receiver noopportunityexists H 's cated at successively higher levels and yieldable predetermined frictional. characteristics and a plurality of resiliently flexible sweeps each com prising a length of clock spring having one end mounted at one side of the conveyer and a free end portion extending obliquely over' the upper urface' of the conveyer, said sweeps being 10- in" planessubstantially parallel to the conveyer whereb yto be ada'ptedto continuously urge" objectsonthecon'veyer inthe directionof their free ends and'having a constant bias ,in's'ufllcient to overcome the" frictional resistancejof objects (pf-predetermined weight normally carried by the conveyer, s aid sweeps being continuously operative ,toe'jecfl'fromfthe conveyer objects' of less weight' and frictional resistance.

f "FREDRICK GETTELMANL 

